Body boards have become a popular recreational device for individuals to glide on a water or snow surface. Body boards, also known as sports boards, probably had their roots in conventional surfboards, although body boards are shorter in length and lighter in weight because of the material used. Body boards are also more flexible so that a user can maneuver the board while using the board in water, or on snow.
One conventional body board has been described in a US patent, issued to Yeh, U.S. Pat. No. 6,106,345 ('345 patent). The disclosure of the '345 patent is incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein. The board according to the '345 patent has an expanded polyethylene (“PE”) core with a protection layer heat-laminated around the outside of the board. The protection layer also has ultraviolet inhibitor and anti-oxidant additives, in order to protect the protection layer fresh for a long time. In addition to providing protection to the board, the protection layer can be made into three separate strips of different colors and the three strips are heat-laminated on the top of the board. Such coloring strips allow the board to have color variations in its exterior. However, this approach provides only a way to add limited color variations to the board.
Another body board is described in US Patent Publication, No. US 2002/0167136 by Lehr et al., where a solid sheet skin is laminated directly to the expanded foam core without using any adhesive layer in-between. However, such boards do not seem to provide any improved ways to decorate the exterior of the boards, other than still relying on the conventional screen-printing technique, which tend to fade in the sun after repeated usage.
It is therefore desirable to provide a new and improved sports or body board which is designed to protect the board from corrosion on a snow or water surface.
It is also desirable to provide a new body board that can be made more aesthetically pleasing and attractive to the would-be buyers. The boards effectively become a symbol of the user's identity and individuality.
It is further desirable to provide a new body board that protects its graphics and designs from the outside environment.